1. His best offensive season in the NHL, albeit in a contract year, came with Craig MacTavish as his coach. He had 39 points in 72 games and skated over 21 minutes a night. This could be a mutually beneficial reunion between the player and the Oilers’ new GM.

2. As Dmitry Chesnokov points out: He could be great for Anton Belov, the 26-year-old defenseman the Oilers signed from the KHL in June, and for Nail Yakupov, who could use a sage Russian veteran in that room.